Roller skate



5. M. ALLR ED ROLLER SKATE July 15, 1947.

Filed Dec 18, 1944 firromvs X Patented July 15, 1947 UNITED STATESPATENT OFFICE ROLLER SKATE Samuel M. Allred, Dayton, Ohio ApplicationDecember 18, 1944, Serial No. 568,627

. 6 Claims.

This invention relates to a roller skate. In some kinds of rollerskating, and more particularly in dance skating and figure skating it isdesirable that the skates shall have substantial flexibility in action,that is, that the foot plate of the skate shall be tiltable withrelation to the roller trucks and that this tilting movement of the footplate shall move the trucks about vertical axes to steer the skate. Itis also desirable that means be provided whereby the degree offlexibility may be varied to conform to the requirements or preferencesof different skaters, In some skates heretofore manufactured the footplate has been tiltable but only to a limitedextent and in the most, ifnot all, of such skates the tilting of the foot plate subjects the kingbolt, or action bolt, to stresses which tend to distort the same.Further, any adjustment of such a skate to change its flexibility causesbinding between relatively movable parts thereof.

One object of the invention is to provide a skate having greaterflexibility in action than has been attained heretofore.

A further object of the invention is to provide such a skate in whichthe tilting of the foot plate will not subject the king bolt toobjectionable stresses. v I a v A further object of the invention is toprovide such a skate which is adjustable to provide any desiredflexibility within a wide range, and in which the relatively movableparts will be retained in firm engagement one with the other in alladjusted positions.

A further object of the invention is to provide such a skate in whichsuch adjustment may be effected without causing binding of the movableparts. a

A further object of the invention is to provide such a skate which is ofa strong durable construction capable of withstanding the stressesimposed thereon by a heavy skater and at any angle to which the footplate may be tilted. v

Other objects of the invention may appear as the skate is described indetail.

In the accompanying drawings Fig. 1 is a side elevation, partly insection, of a skate embodying the invention; Fig. 2 is a bottom planview of one of the roller trucks and its hanger; and Fig.3 is atransverse section taken on the line '3-3 of Fig. 1.

In these drawings there is shown, for the purpose of illustration, apreferred embodiment of the invention. As there shown the foot supportis in the form of a continuous plate 5 which may be secured to the footof the skater-in the usual or any suitable manner, as by attaching it tothe sole and heel of a shoe by screws or the like. Rigidly secured tothe foot plate near the respective ends thereof are two brackets, orhangers, 6, which, in the present instance, are identical in form andare secured to the foot plate by rivets I. The inner and adjacent endsof the hangers are rigidly connected one with the other by alongitudinal bar 8 to constitute a rigid main frame extending forsubstantially the full length of the foot plate and of a width less thanthe width of the latter. The bar may be connected with the hangers inany suitable manner and in the illustrated form I utilize for thispurpose a device having another function which will hereinafter appear.As here shown, each hanger has at its inner end a downwardly extendingtubular art, or elongate boss, 9, which is provided with an internalscrew thread to receive a screw threaded stud or bolt It which projectssome distance belowthe boss 9. The bar 8 has near the respective endsthereof openings H to receive the projecting portions of the studs l0and is secured thereon and rigidly clamped against the lower ends of thebosses by nuts I2, Each hanger has near its outer end a vertical cavityl3a which, in the present construction, is formed in a short downwardlyextending boss or socket member 13 having at its lower end an inwardlyextending annular flange or bottom wall M which provides the socketmember with an opening I5. The upper surface of the flange, or bottomwall of the cavity, conforms substantially to a section of a sphere andforms a bearing to receive the head of a bolt which extends through theopening 55, for a purpose to be later described. The foot plate ispreferably provided with an opening [6 to permit the bolt to be insertedin the socket member after the hanger is attached to the foot plate. Areinforcing rib ll extends between and is formed integral with the boss9 in the socket member l3.

. The roller trucks which support the respective ends of the foot plateare here shown as identical in construction but in reverse positions.Each truck comprises a frame IS, in the present instance a casting,having a tubular transverse portion 19, in which is mounted an axle 20on the respective ends of which rollers 2| are rotatably mounted.Extending inwardly from the tubular portion !-9 is an arm .22 which ispivotally connected with the stud l0 and preferably has adjacent itsinner end a semi-spherical socket 23 which forms a bearing for asubstantially semi-spherical head 24 formed on the lower end of thestud. Extending outwardly from the tubular portion l 9 of the frame is ashort and preferably substantially horizontal arm 25 which is providedwith a vertical opening 26 arranged close to the tubular portion andprovided with an internal screw thread.

A king bolt 21 extends through the opening IS in the socket member ISwith its head 28 in the cavity, the head having a substantiallyspherical lower surface in movable contact with the spherical bearingsurface of the socket member. The lower portion of the bolt is screwthreaded in the threaded opening 26 in the arm 25 and is locked inadjusted positions therein by a nut 29. Interposed between the arm 25and the socket member [3 is a yieldable element or cushion 39 which maybe of any suitable resilient material, such as relatively stifi butyieldable rubber. Preferably the lower end of the socket member isrecessed, as shown at3l, to receive the upper end of the cushion, and awasher 32 is interposed between the cushion and thearm 25.

The cushioning element 30 is maintained under compression and acts onthe socket member to normally retain the foot plate in a plane atsubstantially right angles to the longitudinal axis of the bolt 2'! andtherefore substantially parallel with the axis of the rollers 2|. Whenthe position of the skater is shifted to impose greater weight on oneside of the foot plate than on the other side thereof the cushioningelement yields and permits the foot plate to tilt about a longitudinalaxis extending through the center about which the spherical surface ofthe bearing in the socket member is described. Thus the foot plate andthe hangers move with relation to the bolts 2'! at the, respective endsof the skate Wlthout tilting the bolts or imposing lateral stressesthereon, but the studs in move with the foot plate to inclined positionsso that the lower ends thereof move transversely to the foot plate tocause the trucks and the bolts to move about the vertical axes of thebolts. Due to the reversed positions of the trucks they move in oppositedirections about their vertical axes and the rollers are so positionedthat the skate will turn in the direction of the depressed side of thefoot plate. The extent of the tilting movement of the foot plate and theangular displacement of the trucks is limited only by the yieldabilityof the cushioning element and that yieldability may be varied bychanging the normal compression of the cushioning elements. To modifythe compression of a cushioning element the clamping nut I2 on the studIE] is loosened and the stud is screwed into or out of the tubularmember to position the spherical head'thereof the desired distance fromthe hanger. The lock nut 29 on the bolt 21 is loosened and the bolt isrotated to move the arm 25 toward orv from the hanger, the lower end ofthe bolt being provided with a recess 33 to receive an implement forrotating the same. The studs I and the bolts 2'! being at all times invertical planes parallel one with the other and the bearings beingspherical it will be obvious that the bolts and studs may be adjusted toprovide the skate with any desired flexibility in action, within the,range of flexibility of the cushions, and the foot plate may tilt to theextent permitted by the cushioning elements without causing any of therelatively movable parts to bind. The king bolt being rigidly con nectedwith the truck arm and supported in the hanger for universal pivotalmovement and for longitudinal movement, pressure is exerted by 4 thehanger on the cushioning element on all sides of the bolt and the comression of the cushion by the tilting of the hanger is more nearlyuniform than has been attainable before, because the tilting of thehanger provides space on one side of the bolt to receive the cushioningmaterial that is displaced by the pressure of the hanger on the materialon the other side of the bolt. Thus the cushion may have a higher normalcompression and a greater flexibility than the cushion of an ordinaryskate of this type. In case the adjustment is so great as to adverselyaffect the functioning of the cushioning element a washer or washers maybe inserted between the cushioning element and the arm, or removedtherefrom, or a cushioning element of different length may besubstituted for the original cushioning element.

While I have shown and described one embodiment of my invention I wishit to be understood that I do not desire to be limited to the detailsthereof as various-modifications may occur to a person skilled in theart.

Having now fully described my invention, what I claim as new and desireto secure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a roller skate, a main frame, a foot plate rigid with said mainframe, roller supporting truck frames beneath the respective ends ofsaid main frame, each truck frame having a, substantially horizontaloutwardly extending arm and an inwardly extending arm having adjacentits inner end a bearing socket, a stud rigid with said main frame,extending downwardly therefrom and having a substantially sphericallower end seated in said socket for universal pivotal movement therein,a substantially vertical elongate member rigidly secured to saidoutwardly extending arm and extending upwardly therefrom at a pointadjacent the inner end thereof, a universal pivotal connection betweenthe upper end of said vertical member and said main frame arranged topermit said main frame to tilt with relation to said vertical memberabout an axis extending longitudinally of said foot plate and to permitsaid vertical member to move about a vertical axis with relation to saidmain frame, and a yieldable element interposed between said outwardlyextending arm and said main frame to resist the tilting movement of thelatter, said stud and said vertical member being in substantiallyparallel planes transverse to said main frame and being verticallyadjustable respectively with relation to said main frame and saidoutwardly extending arm to modify the resistance of said yieldableelement to the tilting movement of said foot plate.

2. In a roller skate, a foot plate, hangers rigidly secured to said footplate adjacent the respective ends of the latter, each hanger havingadjacent its inner end a part provided with a substantially verticalscrew threaded bore, screw threaded studs mounted in the respectivebores and each having at its lower end a substantially semi-sphericalbearing portion, a, connecting bar having apertured portions arrangedabout the respective studs, nuts threaded on said studs to clamp saidbar against said parts of said hangers, a roller supporting truck framebeneath each hanger having an. inwardly extending arm provided with abearing socket in which the bearing portion of the adjacent stud isseated, and. also having a relatively short outwardly extending armprovided with a substantially vertical screw threaded opening, [asubstantially vertical member having a screw threaded lower portionmounted in said opening, means for so connecting the upper portion ofsaid vertical member with said hanger that it may move about a verticalaxis with relation thereto and said hanger may tilt with relation tosaid vertical member about an axis extending longitudinally of saidskate, and yieldable means interposed between said outwardly extendingarm and'said hanger to resist the tilting movement of the latter.

3. In a roller skate, a hanger adjacent one end of said skate, adownwardly extending stud rigid with the inner portion of said hanger, atruck frame comprising means for supporting a roller axle, an armextending inwardly from said axle supporting means and pivotallyconnected with said stud, and an arm extending outwardly from said axlesupporting means, an elongate member rigidly secured to said outwardlyextending arm adjacent said axle supporting means and extending upwardlytherefrom, means for so connecting the upper end of said elongate memberwith said hanger that the latter may move lengthwise of said elongatemember and may tilt about an axis extending lengthwise of the skate, andthat said elongate member may move about its longitudinal axis withrelation to the hanger in all positions of the latter with relationthereto, and a yieldable element arranged about said elongate member andconfined between said outwardly extending arm and said hanger.

4. In a roller skate, a hanger adjacent one end of said skate having avertical opening in the outer portion thereof and an upwardly facingsubstantially semi-spherical bearing surface extending about saidopening, a downwardly extending stu'd rigid with the inner portion ofsaid hanger, a truck frame comprising means for supporting a rolleraxle, an arm extending inwardly from said axle supporting means andpivotally connected with the lower portion of said stud, and an armextending outwardly from said axle supporting means, an elongate memberrigidly secured to said outwardly extending arm adjacent said axlesupporting means and extending upwardly therefrom and through saidopening in said hanger, said elongate member having at its upper end ahead of greater diameter than said opening and provided with asubstantially semispherical bearing surface described about a centercoincident with the longitudinal axis of said elongate member andengaging said bearing surface on said hanger, and a resilient elementextending about said elongate member and confined under pressure betweensaid hanger and said outwardly extending arm.

5. In a roller skate, a hanger adjacent one end of said skate havingnear its outer end an opening and an upwardly facing substantiallysemi-spherical bearing surface surrounding said opening, a verticallyadjustable stud supported by and extending downwardly from the innerportion of said hanger and having its lower end provided with a bearingsurface, means for rigidly securing said stud to said hanger invertically adjusted positions with relation to the latter, a truck framecomprising means for supporting a roller axle, an arm extending inwardlyfrom said axle supporting means and having adjacent its inner end anupwardly facing bearing surface to engage the bearing surface on saidstud, and a relatively short arm extending outwardly from said axlesupporting means, an elongate vertical member mounted on said outwardlyextending arm for vertical adjustment with relation thereto andextending upwardly through said opening in said hanger, means forrigidly ecuring said vertical member to said arm in adjusted positionsin elation to the latter, said vertical member having an enlargedportion above said opening provided with a substantially semi-sphericalbearing surface supported on the bearing surface of said hanger, and ayieldable element arranged about said vertical member and confined underpressure between said hanger and said outwardly extending arm.

6. In a roller skate, a hanger adjacent one end of said skate havingnear its inner end a downwardly extending tubular part provided with aninternal screw thread, a substantially vertical stud having an upperscrew threaded portion mounted in said tubular part and having asubstantially semi-spherical lower end, said hanger having adjacent itsouter end a vertical cavity the bottom wall of which is provided with acentral opening, the upper surface of said bottom wall conformingsubstantially to a section of a sphere, a truck frame comprising meansfor supporting a roller axle, an arm extending inwardly from said axlesupporting means and having near its inner end an upwardly facingsubstantially semi-spherical bearing engaging the lower end of said studand a relatively short arm extending outwardly from and substantially inthe horizontal plane of said axle supporting means and having a screwthreaded aperture, a substantially vertical bolt extending through saidcavity in said hanger and having a head supported by and in movablecontact with said spherical bearing surface of the bottom wall of saidcavity, said bolt having its lower portion screw threaded and mounted inthe aperture in said outwardly extending arm and held normally againstmovement therein, and a yieldable element mounted about the intermediateportion of said bolt and confined in compression between said hanger andsaid outwardly extending arm.

SAMUEL M. ALLRED.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 37,305 Plimpton Jan. 6, 1863189,451 Gibson M Apr. 10, 1877 288,821 Higgins July 10, 1883

